Heater for active wear boots

ABSTRACT

An overshoe adapted to be worn over an active wear boot or shoe, such as a ski boot, hiking boot, climbing boot, ice skates and generally any outdoor shoe desired to be protected against the cold environment having a resistance heating element connected to an electrical energy source, said heating element being part of the overshoe, in such a manner as to provide a heat barrier between the overshoe and the active wear boot, conductive leads from the heating element connected to said electrical energy source, preferably a battery and most preferably a rechargeable battery, said energy source preferably having fastening means to fasten said energy source to said active wear boot or to said wearer.

STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT

(Not Applicable)

REFERENCE TO A SEQUENCE LISTING, A TABLE, OR A COMPUTER PROGRAM LISTING APPENDIX SUBMITTED ON COMPACT DISC (SEE 37 CFR 1.52 (e)(5))

(Not Applicable)

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to a heater for boots or shoes designed to be worn outdoors in cold climate conditions and normal shoes worn under cold climate conditions, such as ski boots, hiker's boots, construction boots, ice skates and the like, (hereafter all called active wear boots) and more particularly to an improved method and product for heating such boots, especially ski boots. More particularly, the invention relates to a method and product for heating active wear boots which can function in a number of ways, i.e. to warm cold boots or to prevent cold from getting from the cold ambient to the boot and then to the wearer's feet. Still more particularly, the method and product of the present invention relate to a protective cover (or overshoe) to be worn on an active wear boot. The protective boot cover has thermal elements which when activated provide a heating barrier on or in the protective cover between the active wear boot and the environment. The cover therefore acts to delay, or to prevent entirely, cold temperatures from the ambient from reaching the wearer's feet, especially the toes, and to avoid frigid conditions within the active wear boot. Still more particularly, the method and the product of the invention is a protective outer cover or overshoe adapted to be worn over an active wear boot and may be generally contoured in shape to approximate the general contours of an active wear boot, which overshoe comprises heating elements, which when activated by a suitable energy source, provides a heat barrier to the sides and the top of the active wear boot without obtrusively blocking contact points of the active wear boot to other structures such as would be encountered in ski boots and their corresponding bindings.

There are a variety of currently available heating systems for use in keeping feet and toes from becoming cold in use in the outdoors. The object of these systems is to provide a means for keeping wearer's feet warm enough, or sufficiently isolated from the ambient cold, to prevent at least the toes and preferably other parts of the feet from reaching the extremely cold temperatures that are normally encountered under cold environmental conditions. There are many methods and devices that are used in attempts to achieve this purpose, but many, if not all of these, have drawbacks which limit their accessibility in use with active wear boots. For example, there are socks which contain a heating element through a portion of the socks, and which are battery operated, so as to provide heat to the toes in the area of the sock. These are worn by skiers, bikers, and the like over the feet and in the boot or shoe. Another common device is a paddle-shaped device which is attached to appropriately resistive elements to a battery source clipped on the outside of the boots. The device is usually placed under the feet or soles in the area of the toes of the boot wearer. Another device is a boot heater which has a resistance heater and battery mounted in the boot.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The product of the invention is essentially an insulating envelope or sheath (sometimes termed herein as an overshoe) which has heating elements within it which may be actuated by a battery source, either rechargeable or not. The overshoe is worn over the active wear boot and functions to insulate the boot itself around the area of the toes, instep and soles from the external environment. A sheath or overshoe without any heating elements is currently available in the prior art and is sold and used as an insulating layer in an effort to protect the boot wearer's feet from the extreme cold of the environment. These products are generally made from an insulating material such as neoprene or other rubbery type expandable materials. They are preferred overshoes for the invention.

The present invention, however provides a heating element attached in or on such an overshoe, so that with a proper source of electrical energy, such as a battery, the heating element can be actuated to provide heat to the area of the overshoe which encompasses the wearer's foot in areas vulnerable to the cold, preferably at least the toes of the foot. Suitably it extends to other areas of the foot as well. Usually, it does not cover the sole of the boot as that would interfere with some activities such as skiing, hiking, ice skating and the like.

In this field, the overshoes applied over the active wear boot are variously referred to as clogs, overshoes, overboots, sleeves, sheaths, etc. They are worn over the boots or shoes rather than on the foot itself. They are somewhat thick, relatively speaking, and thus, could not be worn as a device to be inserted into a ski boot.

While it is desired to supply enough heat transferred to actually keep the foot warm, in fact, in many cases, it is sufficient to supply enough heat energy to the overshoe to act as a warm barrier between the outside cold environment and the inside of the boot to forestall or delay the transfer of heat from the foot to the cold environment or the cold surface of the boot. In such cases, the actual creation of elevated temperatures within the boot or shoe is not necessary or obtained. Thus, the amount of heat generated, the size and capacity of the heating elements, and the level of energy provided by the energy source are totally within the discretion of the manufacturer in consideration of the needs of the ultimate user.

The present invention is a product, which comprises an overshoe with internally positioned resistance heating elements, which are activated by a suitable energy source such as a battery. The heating elements are preferably located either within the insulating overshoe itself or line the inside of the surface thereof to be protected from the ambient environment and to be as close as possible to the outer surface of the active wear boot. The product is adapted to be worn over the active wear boot and should cover at least the portion of the shoe in which the toes are located, preferably including the part of the foot further up the instep.

The heating elements are the type well-known in the art. For example, they provide resistance to the electrical current so as to generate heat, much in the same way that heat is generated within a heating pad, electric blankets, hair dryers and the like. The present product is provided with an electric source preferably in the form of a battery and most preferably a rechargeable batter, generally in the range of 2.5 to 9 volts. Batteries equipped with variable rheostat controls are especially suitable when it is desired to control the amount of energy supplied from the battery to the heating elements.

The heating elements are located within the overboot in a manner and pattern which provides the desired heat exposure given a pre-selected energy source. Thus, while the pattern of the heating element may be a simple L shape, extending from the energy source along the inside of the overboot bending in the toe area to spread across the toes in that area as it is done in some heated socks, it is preferred to apply the heating element in a wavy pattern so as to cover more surface area.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The invention will be understood more fully from a consideration of the drawings accompanying this application, wherein FIG. 1 is an illustration of a ski boot of the invention in elevation side-view showing the overshoe of the invention, and

FIG. 2 is a top view of the overshoe of the invention showing one embodiment of fastening means and the presence of a battery connected to a connective wire heating element located on the ski boot.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The drawings (FIGS. 1 and 2) which accompany this application will illustrate preferred aspects of the invention. In FIG. 1, a ski boot 10 is shown encompassed by a ski boot overshoe 11 of the present invention, fastened at the rear of the ski boot, by fastening means 12. The overshoe fastening means 12 (17 & 18 in FIG. 2) may be any means such as Velcro® straps (as shown in FIG. 2 at 19 & 20), buckle belts, stretch elastic band, ties (shoe style lace ups), and the like. Running out of the overshoe 11 is connective wire 13 running up to battery 14 through connector 13 a (FIG. 2) located and fastened on boot 10 by a spring clip 15. Of course, any fastener means may be employed to allow fastening to the ski boot, but in the present drawing the spring clip is used and is hooked onto the top of the ski boot. The fastening means may also be any other which are convenient and reliable, such as spring clip type (as shown), ties, Velcro® straps, buckles, belts, laces and the like. Wire 13 is connected to heating element shown in a wavy pattern. FIG. 2 shows an overshoe 11 equipped with a wavy pattern of heating element 16 different from the wavy pattern shown in FIG. 1. Fastener means 19 and 20 are shown as Velcro® patches on open straps 17 and 18.

The material of the overshoe is preferably an insulating material, which is pliable, stretchable, and preferably pullable over an active wear boot of various sizes. As such, it would be of a unitary molded shape. It need not be pullable over the active wear boot, however, and may be of an open shoe type (with or without a sole as the conditions dictate) which can be laced-up over the active wear boot. It may be of any convenient material, preferably one which is elastic and stretchable so that when it is pulled over the boot or closed over the boot, it will conform to the contour of the boot. In the present invention, a neoprene overshoe is preferred. In this regard, as noted previously, there is commercially available a neoprene overshoe boot to be worn over ski boots which is easily pulled over the boot and is attachable at the heel end. It is equipped with Velcro® overlapping straps which may be pulled against the boot holding it tight against the boot and fastened by sticking the Velcro® straps together. This stretchability provides a means for accommodating various sizes of boot so that a small number, perhaps 3 or 4 sizes of overshoe, e.g. Small, Medium and Large, would be sufficient to accommodate most of the prevalent sizes. It should be noted that the overshoe need not have connectable straps (which are discontinuous) such as is shown as closable (17 & 18), but may constitute a single continuous unitary elastic strap which is stretchable and pullable over the heel of the boot.

The product of the present invention also preferably is provided with a protective inner layer to protect the heating element from damage or dislocation when the wearer slides the active wear boot into the overshoe boot. This feature is not shown in the drawings.

Thus, it can be seen that the essence of the invention is an overboot or overshoe adapted to be worn over an active wear boot or shoe, such as a ski boot, hiking boot, climbing boot, ice skate, and generally any outdoor shoe desired to be protected against the cold environment, comprising a resistance heating element connected to an electrical energy source, said heating element being part of the overshoe in such a manner as to provide a heat barrier between the overshoe and the active wear boot, conductive leads from said heating element connected to said electrical energy source, preferably a battery and most preferably a rechargeable battery, said energy source, preferably comprising fastening means to fasten said energy source to said active wear boot or to said wearer. 

1. An active-wear boot heater comprising: a protective overshoe for said boot, said overshoe adapted to cover at least a portion of said boot and having fastening means to fasten said overshoe on the said boot, at least one heating element mounted in or on such overshoe and capable of being activated to a heated state by an energy source, said element being located in said overshoe, fastening means on said energy source for fastening to said boot or said wearer means for energizing said energy source to provide electric current to heat said heating element.
 2. A heater according to claim 1, wherein said energy source is a battery
 3. A heater according to claim 2, wherein the heating element constitutes a wavy pattern.
 4. A heater according to claim 3, wherein the overshoe covers the sides and top of said boot.
 5. A heater according to claim 4, wherein the battery is rechargeable.
 6. A heater according to claim 5, wherein the battery source provides from 2.5 to 9 volts.
 7. A heater according to claim 1, wherein the fastening means of said overshoe are in the form of at least two open straps fastenable to each other by fastening means.
 8. A heater according to claim 1 wherein the fastening means of said overshoe are in the form of a unitary stretchable band adapted to fit over the heel of the wearer
 9. A heater according to claim 6 wherein the fastening means of said straps belts with a buckle.
 10. An overshoe adapted to be worn by a wearer over an active wear boot, desired to be protected against the cold environment, having a resistance heating element connected to an electrical energy source, said heating element being part of the overshoe, in such a manner as to provide a heat barrier between the overshoe and the active wear boot, conductive leads from said heating element connected to said electrical energy source, said energy source comprising fastening means to faster said energy source to said active wear boot or to said wearer. 